


Under a Cold Day's Sun

by thesaddestofbeans



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Angst, Angst and Tragedy, Drama & Romance, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Eventual Happy Ending, Explicit Language, Hunter Jesse McCree, I'm so sorry, Kidnapping, M/M, Mermaid Hanzo, Slow Burn, Sort Of, Temporary Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-18
Updated: 2018-05-30
Packaged: 2019-04-04 00:10:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 9
Words: 12,263
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14007849
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thesaddestofbeans/pseuds/thesaddestofbeans
Summary: Jesse McCree has been poaching rare fish for as long as he can remember.Granted, the job occupation wasn’t exactly his choice- he accidentally fell off a boat somewhere in the Pacific after making the hasty decision to cut everyone out of his old life and start fresh. The poachers found him, nearly dead and clinging to a stack of driftwood, and offered him a job. He accepted, of course; it was either that or continue to drift into death’s open arms.--A new client's obsession leads to months searching the depths of Vrimehr Lagoon for the beast rumored to be living within its depths.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> heyo sorry this first part is pretty short, its more of an intro than anything

Jesse McCree has been poaching rare creatuers for as long as he can remember.

Granted, the job occupation wasn’t exactly his choice- he accidentally fell off a boat somewhere in the Pacific after making the hasty decision to cut everyone out of his old life and start fresh. The poachers found him, nearly dead and clinging to a stack of driftwood, and offered him a job. He accepted, of course; it was either that or continue to drift into death’s open arms.

It wasn't _too_ bad, he guessed. He traveled the world, and honestly the only view that might compete with waves and scales glittering under the Sun’s peak was the desert sunrise back home.

The worst part? Well. Usually beautiful scales were immediately followed by crossbows and hooks and blood, clawing and dragging at whatever creature had to be brought in. Jesse hated that part.

All sorts of creatures were dragged in, paid for extensively by rich clients to be preserved and showcased in extravagant homes: giant squid, kraken, nymphs, kelpies, hippocampi, selkies, and the occasional siren were at the top of the list. This order, however, was something Jesse had never even heard of.

“Fuckin’ _Japanese Water Dragon_ , what the hell? That bastard is sendin’ us on a wild goose chase.” He leaned over the edge of the raft, a habit that, in hindsight, caused this whole mess anyways.

“God, Jesse, just shut the fuck _up_. I don't care if it’s here or not, he paid us shit-loads of money just to try and find it.” Aleks scowled and dragged Jesse back by the collar. “If it means we have to sit here and look for eight goddamn years before we find it, then it will be a comfortable eight goddamn years with more money than either of us have seen in our lives coming out the back end.”

“I just don't get it. Why would he pay us to hunt somethin’ that ain't here?” Jesse huffed and crossed his arms.

“Fucking hell, we don't know it isn't here! How many times do I have to say it?”

He had seen the frustration building in her shoulders. He should probably drop the subject.

He didn't drop the subject.

“How long are y'all just gonna let him drag you around by the nose? Until he stops payin’? It's _not here_ , Al. Even I can see that. This lake is fuckin’ tiny!” In truth, Jesse was dying to see a Dragon. He had heard tales about them, wild creatures that were far more intelligent than any human and far more beautiful.

“Jesus _fucking_ Christ, just shut your mouth and look!” Aleks snarls, “And don't fucking call me Al!”

And so they looked, along with the dozens of other poachers, for a sign of the creature rumored to be in the depths of the lake.


	2. Chapter 2

The first to sight the creature was decidedly not Jesse.

It happened several months after their arrival- long enough that basic buildings had been set up on the shore instead of tents and the people thriving within had begun to grow restless.

It also wasn't Aleks, no matter how much she had hoped it was; she had been recruited not long before they were sent out on this particular job and she hadn't yet discovered the horror of bringing untold beauty to be slaughtered like a pig. Well, Jesse at least hoped that was the case, because he thought he had found somewhat of a kindred spirit in her and didn't want to be proven right in thinking that he was the only one who realized the gravity of what they were doing.

The poor soul who first encountered the beast described him as something oddly similar to a mermaid, if mermaids had teeth like daggers and horrible, poisonous spines and tangled, golden fur to accompany his scales.

Jesse thought of him as a “he" only because he was the next person to be approached by the beast- because no one could stumble across something so beautiful, so deadly, so incredibly razor sharp on accident. Jesse was a part of a test and he must have passed because instead of being torn to shreds and left to bleed out on the shore like the last he was allowed to approach the Dragon, to touch him; and now Jesse was in terrible danger because how on earth could he lay a hand on the most incredible being he had ever laid eyes on?

He didn't dare tell anyone about his encounter. Not because he was worried about them finding, oh no. Only because he was promised another visit if he did, and Jesse would give anything in the world to see the beast again.

Not to mention he desperately needed to know the beast’s name, if only so he could stop referring to him as ‘the beast’ in his head.

The meeting itself had been otherworldly; Jesse had been on one of the rafts when something had grabbed him by the back of his shirt and dragged him under the water.

Time seemed to stop; his heart pounded out of his chest and he couldn't see a thing past the flashing of scales. His lungs screamed for air and he might have screamed too but he couldn't hear either- not past the rush of water as he was dragged deeper and deeper into the lake.

His vision started to go black and he wondered if this was where he would die.

...

He... Wasn't dead?

Jesse opened his eyes. The softly glowing algae clinging to the rocks illuminated an otherwise pitch black cavern while pleasantly warm water lapped gently at his feet. His chest ached from the near-asphyxiation and his throat was rubbed raw, but it was quickly overlooked when he locked eyes with whoever was staring at him from within the deeper water.

“H- hey...” He reached out, hand shaking slightly. “Did you... Drag me down here?”

The figure moved forward, following the gentle incline until their eyes just barely peeked out of the water.

“Do y’ have a name?” Jesse leaned towards him and continued, “Are you... Are you th’ Dragon?”

They paused before moving even closer, glossy black hair cascading over their slick, pale chest. Their gaze- piercing, golden brown gaze- flicked over Jesse before they dragged their heavy, shimmering body beside Jesse’s own. And then their mouth fell open and a low, rumbling voice replied “I am he. And you are..?”

Jesse sat for a moment, speechless. They- he- he was _magnificent_. The soft blue glow of the plants around him reflected off of every deep blue scale and made the tufts of gold flowing down his sides shine. “M’ name’s Jesse.”

“Well, Jesse,” He paused, “Considering you haven’t already tried to shoot me like your companion had, you may not be the best to try and scare sense into. Though shock truly is one hell of a drug; maybe you just haven’t come to your senses quite yet.”

“I’ont think I can rightly pull my gun on someone as beautiful as you.” The words flew out of Jesse’s mouth before he thought to stop them.

The Dragon laughed, quiet and almost musical. “I'm flattered, Jesse.”

His heart fluttered in his chest and wow, that really must have been the most confusing boner Jesse had ever had. “Though really I don’t much enjoy drawin’ on just about any o’ the beasts we go after. Th- that’s not t’ say y’ ain’t any different from anythin’ else they’ve gone for. I truly haven’t seen anythin’ like ya.”

“You'll make me blush, Jesse,” the Dragon purrs. An elegant, clawed hand pushed on Jesse's chest, forcing him to lay flush with the eel-like tail beside him. “Maybe next time I’ll give you my name.”

“Next time?” Jesse shivered as nails traced their way up his sternum.

“Yes, next time. Unless you do not wish to see me again.” The Dragon rubbed the pads of his fingers against the sides of Jesse’s neck, watching intently as sparks were absorbed into his skin and gills began to bloom. “These should make it easier, yes?”

Jesse gasped and squirmed as the gaps in his neck spread open. The strange sensation and the feeling of magic running through his veins faded. “Won't- won't th’ others see?”

“I’m sure you’ll find some way to hide them,” the Dragon mused while running his hands through Jesse’s damp hair. “Besides, they close up once you’re out of the lake.”

“A’ight.” Jesse’s eyes fluttered closed as the Dragon continued to groom him, slowly drifting to sleep to the sound of water lapping gently at the shore and the Dragon’s deep, peaceful breathing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> chapter 3 preview:
> 
> "He had reached up to reassure himself that the gills were still there, that he wasn’t dreaming, and felt nothing but smooth skin. He... Had he been dreaming? Aleks said that the watch had seen him fall asleep in his raft before drifting off and losing sight of him until morning, when he had washed up on shore. Maybe it was all just a hallucination brought on by the heat and dehydration. It had to be."
> 
> also the next chapter will be way longer lmao i just wanted to get their first meeting out of the way
> 
> -
> 
> comments and criticism are appreciated thx


	3. Chapter 3

“Jesse.”

Aleks had woken him up the next morning. It had still seemed so real as he listened to her lecture him, when he was still damp with lakewater and the openings on his neck still tingled. She had forcefully dragged him into their shared cabin and pushed him into the shower, but as he had stood there under the hot spray everything felt so detached from reality.

He had reached up to reassure himself that the gills were still there, that he wasn’t dreaming, and felt nothing but smooth skin. He... Had he been dreaming? Aleks said that the watch had seen him fall asleep in his raft before drifting off and losing sight of him until morning, when he had washed up on shore. Maybe it was all just a hallucination brought on by the heat and dehydration. It had to be.

It had to be.

Aleks insisted he wait as long as possible before going out on the rafts again. He didn’t quite see why; he could’ve taken care of himself, no matter what had happened the last time- not to mention something kept drawing him in, a pull beckoning him into the depths of the lake.

Instead he had spent a week on raft watch, making sure that the other poachers arrived for their shift on time and didn’t fall asleep mid-shift like he had. It was nice, sitting at the pier the group had set up about a month into their stay. Being as close to the equator as it was, Vrimehr Lagoon was hot year round and Jesse, having been born and raised in the oppressive desert heat, practically thrived in it. He was never a fan of oceans anyway; he never saw them as a child so the beasts that roamed them seemed terrifying, and after running for his life only to nearly die surrounded by nothing but water he felt much more secure when it was an easy day’s travel by foot around it. He wasn’t exactly scared of the ocean- he couldn’t be, not with how often the poachers set off into the blue on a hunt. It just... Made him feel uneasy. Like nothing on earth could save him if the waves decided to take their revenge- pull him deep, deep down into the lowest crevices where the corpses of failed hunts and ghosts of past conquests would tear him limb-from-limb and leave him, screaming and praying for death to take him.

But maybe these thoughts were brought on after his nap on the raft. They certainly hadn’t happened  _ before _ , thought his wariness wasn’t new. The faint memory of a dream, a creature so beautiful yet dangerous he was willing to put his life quite literally in his hands and melt like putty at a simple touch, beckoned him. He longed to throw himself in the lake just to feel the sensation of claws rasping against his thin shirt and chest hair, of rough fingers rubbing intently at the side of his neck- but if it had been real, if he hadn’t been dreaming, the gills should surely still be there.

Over the week he had grown into the habit of running his hands along the skin there just to make sure. Every once in a while he could swear he felt the slightest divot in his flesh, but by the time he asked Aleks to check it was gone. She was worried about him, he could tell. His mind was occupied completely by the dream, and while he still ate and bathed and did his job he found joy only in sitting on the pier and staring intently into the lake.

When, after a week, he was finally cleared to go back on to raft duty he almost cried.

He wasn’t sure if it was out of relief or terror, to be honest. On one hand all the excitement, all the dreaming, all of the  _ beauty _ he had envisioned resided just under the surface.

On the other?

Well.

His fears of the ocean had only amplified as the week drew on. His dreams were plagued with needle-sharp teeth and countless slimy hands, holding him suspended in twilight blues as his lungs scream for air and his body is torn apart.

The night after the announcement he was told to rest.

The nightmares came.

HIs senses were flooded with fear and his heart pounded in his chest and he struggled for air as the awful hands reached out once again- but the horrors of the deep were held at bay by pale skin and spun gold.

_ Sleep, Jesse. I’ll see you soon. _

A kiss, laid gently on his forehead, and the gills opened up once again. He breathed, at peace, and allowed himself to sink further and further into the bottom of the ocean.

...

When his back hit the ground he woke.

He rolled himself out of bed as best as he could, groaning as his back cracked under the strain; Jesse never really was a morning person. “Fuckin’ damn it. Hate this part.”

Aleks groaned from across the room and threw her pillow at him in response. “God, shut up. Some of us don’t have raft duty until later.”

“Don’t be an asshole, Aleks. If y’ get up now I’ll make us both some coffee,” Jesse grumbled.

“Bribing people is  _ cruel _ , Jesse, you know I can’t resist an offer like that,” she complained, swinging her legs off the side of the bed nonetheless.

Jesse looked away when he realized she definitely wasn’t wearing any pants. “Why the fuck are y’ incapable of wearing real clothing to bed? We’re sharin’ a room for fuck’s sake.”

“Please, Jesse,” she huffed, “We both know I’m the gayest bitch in this place and you aren’t interested in me anyway.”

“That ain’t the point! Leave me some innocence!” He howled dramatically and fell back onto the bed.

She just let out a loud guffaw. He sat back up and grinned at her before changing into a worn pair of jeans and leaving to retrieve their coffee.

It turned out Jesse was right about Aleks. He had spent some time telling her about the things he had done, spent some time just getting to know her; she had seemed horrified, and confessed that she only joined because she owed the poachers for a beast her father had bought but refused to pay for.

She told Jesse that her father begged them not to kill him. Swore he would do anything to pay them back.

She told Jesse that he hadn’t even hesitated to say yes when the poachers asked for  _ her _ .

Jesse had never wanted to kill anyone as badly as he did then.

...

He was wrenched out of his thoughts by the beep of the coffee machine. He poured their respective mugs, black for him and sugar for her, before he grabbed a couple of bagels out of the basket on the communal kitchen counter and left. After delivering Aleks’s share of food he quickly changed and, after realizing he was late, stumbled out of the room half-dressed. The rest of his clothes and gear had been thrown into his bag in a flurry, though he made 100% sure that sunblock was stashed with everything else because when he went out in the raft the first time he hadn’t put any on and ended up horribly red and blistered. 

The raft was waiting as he ran down the dock. He threw his equipment in it and finally finished buttoning his flannel, grinning and waving at the man on watch before jumping into the raft and finally pushing out into the lake.

Once he was well towards the middle of the lake he stalled the raft’s engine and shed his shoes. He took a moment to stretch out and stare into the sky, enjoying the clear, not-quite-warm air of twilight.

Before he could fall asleep Jesse restarted the engine, navigated over the deepest trench, and dropped the anchor. He kept an eye on the water, though most of his attention was on the clouds brushing the mountains in the distance going from violet to pink, the sky lightening up around them until the sun was finally, completely above the horizon.

Jesse sighed contentedly, closing his eyes and leaning against the edge of the raft.

His shirt moved, just a bit, and he sat up straighter.

He was about to turn when the rustle turned into a solid grip, jerking him backwards and off the raft with a splash; he jerked against the rough grip and cool water and panic built in his chest as he tried to hold his breath but they were  _ there _ , the gills he had felt opening up a week ago were back and he inhaled, oxygen rushing to his head and making him dizzy for a moment.

It was happening. It was actually happening.  _ Again _ . Jesse was being dragged back through the water but the fear was buried under the sheer joy of knowing he was  _ right _ , he didn't dream a thing and the Dragon had chosen  _ him _ . He twisted, locating the hands grabbing at his clothes and holding onto them as hard as he could. The Dragon, beautiful and glittering in the low light under the lake, paused in his mad dash to stroke gently at Jesse’s face and adjust his arms until Jesse was cradled gently against his lower body and tail. Jesse’s body vibrated as the Dragon spoke. “We have to hurry, terrling.”

He hadn't really thought about how large the Dragon had been the last time, but now that he was this close and in a clearer state of mind he realized how incredibly small he was in comparison. One of the Dragon's hands could easily wrap completely around Jesse's bicep.

They moved forward once again, every powerful slash if the Dragon’s tail sending them plummeting deeper. The light quickly filtered away, Jesse blinking against the midnight pressing in on them and only relaxing when the familiar blue glow of algae bloomed around them. The Dragon swept them under a shelf of faintly glowing rock and slowed as they ascended towards the glossy surface.

“Welcome back,” stated the Dragon once he had beached them both in the sand, smiling slyly as Jesse clung to where slick skin turned to scales around his waist.

“You- I- I thought y’ were a  _ dream _ .” Jesse felt absolutely star-struck, air sucked from his lungs and adrenaline pumping through his veins.

“Clearly you were wrong.” The Dragon ran clawed hands through Jesse’s hair and across his shoulders. He melted under the soft caress, shivering as claws scraped softly against the dip in his spine.

“H- hey wait!” Jesse rolled away and pointed a finger at the Dragon. “How do I know y’ ain’t gonna kill me the moment I relax?”

“I didn’t last time, didn’t I?” The Dragon slowly flattened himself out on his back, watching Jesse with wide, golden eyes. Jesse went to speak but he interrupted, “And it would have been better for me, probably, to kill you then anyways. It was more likely that you would go back and tell them where I am and how to get to me than keep quiet and eventually come back.”

Jesse sat in silence for a moment. “Then why... Why me?”

“Because you sat there and stared in blatant awe when most men would have run screaming. You fascinate me, Jesse. I want to know you.” The Dragon swept lazy circles in the sand.

“Tell me your fuckin’ name,” Jesse growled, eyes narrowed.

“Can’t you ask politely?” The Dragon let out a low, rolling chuckle.

“Tell me your fucking name. Please.” The words were spit through grit teeth as Jesse stumbled off of his ass.

The Dragon shimmied forward and reached cautiously for Jesse’s ankle.

Jesse was tempted to kick him away but before he could act on it that gravelly, hypnotic voice said a single word.

“Hanzo.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Peek at the next chapter:
> 
> "Hanzo let out an undignified squeak as Jesse put an arm under the space where his hips widened and took a significant portion of his weight in his arms. “You- ! Put me down!”  
> “Ya turd, quit squirming! You're gonna knock both of us over.” Jesse stumbled, digging his hands into soft, damp flesh and hiking the Dragon up just a bit further."
> 
> \--  
> comments, kudos, and criticism are appreciated


	4. Chapter 4

Jesse was frozen in place. A broad, warm hand laid itself so delicately and so hesitantly on his ankle that it sent shivers up his body.

“You wanted my name. It is Hanzo.” The Dragon, Hanzo, attempted to further flatten himself on the sand.

Jesse gulped, suddenly overcome with guilt for lashing out at someone who had been nothing but gentle and kind to him. “Yeah, alright. ‘M sorry.”

“There is nothing to apologize for, Jesse. I am sure the stories told of me weave a less than pleasant image.” Hanzo’s voice was tinged with amusement. He released the hand resting on Jesse’s foot and leaned back, using what he could of his tail to put himself at Jesse’s eye level.

Jesse chuckled as Hanzo struggled to stay balanced. “Wouldn’t it be easier for me t’ sit down?”

“I’ve already gotten this far,” Hanzo grunted, “and giving up now would involve dropping myself on the ground.”

Jesse laughed heartily and took the step forward to bridge the gap between the two. He pulled on Hanzo until the Dragon’s arms were hooked around Jesse’s neck. “Lemme just-"

Hanzo let out an undignified squeak as Jesse put an arm under the space where his hips widened and took a significant portion of his weight in his arms. “You- ! Put me down!”

“Ya turd, quit squirming! You're gonna knock both of us over.” Jesse stumbled, digging his hands into soft, damp flesh and hiking the Dragon up just a bit further- which left Hanzo leaning heavily over Jesse’s shoulder.

“You’re the one who  _ picked me up _ !” Hanzo used Jesse's shoulders to push himself upright, but the man hadn't expected the sudden shift in weight and lost his balance.

Suddenly he was colliding with slick scales and warm skin. They both ended up horizontal and in the sand and oh, wow, when did that happen? Jesse’s face was pressed against Hanzo’s sternum, every breathless laugh bringing with it the metallic scent of electricity and brine.

He was overcome with the inexplicable urge to lick the pale, almost blue-tinged skin brushing his lips.

_ Wow, no, okay, we’re done here. It’s time to go. _

Only then did it register that Hanzo, too, had stopped laughing. The hands that had been holding tightly to his shoulders had drifted, caressing the back of Jesse’s neck and wandering over the tightly muscled lines of his back.

“Hanzo...” Jesse breathed into his skin. He could feel the breath stuttering in Hanzo’s lungs, the heart thundering under his fingertips.

“Hush.” And oh, wow, Hanzo was  _ strong _ . Jesse was by no means a small man, but the Dragon was so easily able to hook his arms under Jesse’s and just  _ pull _ him until they were face-to-face.

_ He’s basically a fish. Don’t fuck the fish. You do not want to fuck the fish, no, STOP THAT- _

“You are blushing, hunter,” the Dragon’s teeth flashed a mere inch from his nose. “Don’t tell me you’re  _ flustered _ .”

“No! No, I’m not-” Jesse huffed and hid his face under the Dragon’s chin. “ ‘m not flustered.”

Hanzo just laughed in response. Jesse’s face and neck flushed as he tried to roll away, but the Dragon’s slick tail curled around his legs and waist; hydrophobic fur tickled the bare skin of his ankles and lower back and smooth scales held him tight enough to keep him from going much of anywhere.

Jesse sighed, low and content. The flesh around him was comfortably warm and soft, though a strange rough patch under his cheek gave him pause.

He turned to try and look, but Hanzo twisted his shoulder further every time he moved closer.

“Wait, wait, calm down. What’s that?” Jesse worms his arms out of Hanzo’s grasp and pushes him flat on the ground.

Hanzo was the one who flushed, then; though the redness was clearly from shame than any kind of playful embarrassment. A brand of sorts was pressed into his right shoulder, two dragons looping almost elegantly around each other. It would’ve been beautiful if it didn’t look so painful.

“What... happened..?” Jesse tried to reach out, his voice barely a whisper; Hanzo flinched before his hand could make contact and rolled away.

There’s a pause before he purrs a low “Nothing,” covering his break in composure by stretching luxuriously and flirting the soft tufts at the end of his tail over Jesse’s shins. The poacher wants to give in, go back to their easy flirting and sharp wit, but someone like Hanzo didn’t end up in a place like this without putting up a struggle.

“Hanzo...” Jesse shuffled his head into Hanzo’s lap until the Dragon could do nothing but snort and reassuringly cradle the back of Jesse’s skull.

“It was a gift.” Hanzo’s face was suddenly clouded and unreadable in a way it hadn’t been before.

Jesse felt the inexplicable urge to coddle the (at least) thirty foot beast. “Who’d do such a thing?”

Hanzo let out a heavy sigh. “Those who would banish me from my own home after I-”

The words seemed to choke him.

“I...” His nails dug into Jesse’s scalp, tugging until it was on the verge of painful.

Jesse ran a hand along the Dragon’s side, trying to encourage the words from his mouth.

“I refused to kill my brother.”

The silence between the two was palpable- Hanzo tried to push Jesse away but he refused to move, nuzzling at the smooth skin of his stomach.

“He... He wanted to be human. He always had such wanderlust- he wanted to go everywhere, do everything. Nothing could tame him, and I... I encouraged him. They said he brought shame to us, that he had to die; that I was the one who had to do it. I didn’t agree.”

“Is that how y’ ended up here?” Jesse reached for the tail flicking by his ankle and wasn’t able to resist cuddling it to his chest like a stuffed animal.

Hanzo snorted, flicking it playfully and accidentally clipping the hunter’s chin. “Mmm, yes. This place used to be connected to the ocean, you see. This cavern- it was filled completely with water and that far wall-” Hanzo gestures, “did not exist. We would- that is, my brother and I. We would come here often enough, flirt and laugh with the locals who hunted a strain of bass that live in the lagoon. We were a secret; a horribly kept one, but a secret nonetheless- any visitor who came to town was immediately taken to meet us. I stopped going, after a time. I was to take over as head of the clan, and as such it was not my place to engage with such frivolities.”

“Y’ sound like you miss it.” Jesse traced the edges of nail-sized scales.

“I... I do. I miss my brother.” He inhales, almost struggling to draw in air. “I miss my home, Jesse. I have been stuck in this place for nearly a century and you have been the only person to see me since. I thought I could have been content to stay here, to live out the rest of my years in isolation, but I am  _ lonely _ . The one being I was ever able to love freely is the one I gave up my life for and I don’t even know if he is still alive, let alone wandering free like he yearned to so long ago.” Hanzo lets out a suspiciously watery chuckle. “That little shit, he better be enjoying himself.”

Jesse ran his hands reassuringly through the fur clutched to his chest before speaking. “I don’t want t’ speak too hastily, but... I’m going to get us out of here, Han. I don’t  _ care _ what it takes, I’ll get you out of here. I’ll get you back to your brother. I  _ will _ figure this out, ‘cause I sure as hell ain’t smart but I’m the most stubborn bastard you’ll ever meet. We’re getting out of here, I promise you. It might not happen tomorrow, it might not happen a year from now, but  _ it will happen _ .”

Hanzo’s hands retreat from their place on his head and Jesse is momentarily terrified he said the wrong thing.

Well, until the Dragon flops over on top of him and he’s buried in coils of fish tail and lean muscle.

“Thank you. This means the world to me, Jesse McCree,” Hanzo mumbled.

It was the first time they kissed. Jesse would mark that day on the calendar of his phone with a little fish symbol, just to make sure he remembered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow guys sorry this took so long  
> i try to update once a week but spring break happened and i had a ton of family obligations and then i got hella sick and wasnt able to go to school let alone write  
> i promise things will be a bit more regular now, this chapter is coming a few days earlier than my usual update day because i have a ton of make-up work to do before i finish anything else for this  
> i do have a preview for the next chapter already, so here you go:
> 
> "The peace lasted three months. Three blissful months of warm water and flashy blue scales, of luminescent algae and golden fur.  
> And was brought to an abrupt, screeching halt when the client sent an associate to check in on their progress. Hell, Jesse was hardly more than a particularly skilled goon; the man wasn’t supposed to pay him any attention.  
> It was horrifying to wake up one morning to find him- snarling, beanie pulled down over his ears- polishing his gun at the end of Jesse’s bed."


	5. Chapter 5

The peace lasted three months. Three blissful months of warm water and flashy blue scales, of luminescent algae and golden fur.

And was brought to an abrupt, screeching halt when the client sent an associate to check in on their progress. Hell, Jesse was hardly more than a particularly skilled goon; the man wasn’t supposed to pay him any attention.

It was horrifying to wake up one morning to find him- snarling, beanie pulled down over his ears- polishing his gun at the end of Jesse’s bed.

“I don’t like getting involved in shit that isn’t my business, kid,” he began, not even twitching when Jesse yanked Peacekeeper from where it was tucked beside his cot and aimed it at him.

“The fuck did y’do to Aleks??” His voice began to shake.

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” The man growled. He set his gun on the floor with a faint click and wow, okay, there’s another one apparently. Time for that one to get some special treatment, too.

“You _bastard!_ You better not’ve laid a _hand_ on her!”

He only chuckled darkly in response.

“Th’ hell do you want with me?” Jesse’s voice cracked, the gun in his hand trembling.

“Look, kid. I don’t want you stuck like this, in this... place, with these people.” The man said, his voice low and dangerous. “I know you found the Dragon already, _pendejo_. What you’re doing is going to get the both of you killed, no matter what the original buyer wanted.”

Jesse’s face went white as a sheet, Peacekeeper nearly dropping out of his hands. “I don’t know what you’re talkin’ about!”

The man sighed. “Honestly, kid, I’m not dumb. Your little friend- yes she’s alright, I just asked her to wait outside for a second- she says you disappear all the time. You go out on the lake and anchor in one place for hours on end and come back sopping wet, yet claim to not have found the thing you were sent here to hunt down and kill. That lives in the lake. The one you keep disappearing into for ages.” He places the second gun on the floor with its twin. “I’m going to tell you a secret, cowboy. The man who hired your boss to hunt that thing down doesn’t want him dead either. We _need_ someone like you.

“I can’t tell you much, yet. I can tell you that this started as a hunt for revenge and the boss had a change of heart, but didn’t want to stop trying to find him. If I’m going to be real, the boss wants to talk to him more than anything. I came here to tell your people about his change of heart but your boss wasn’t too receptive. Said he had many talents but dragging shit in like him alive isn’t one of them.

“And damn, of course Hanzo couldn’t make our job just a little easier by not killing anyone until we showed up. So that’s why we’re here, kid. We’ve got to get him, and do it before they do. And so I’d like to think we have the advantage.

“Questions?”

Jesse was in shock. There was just... _So much_ , so much to take in in such a short amount of time. He had made a promise to Hanzo, had made it again every day between breathless kisses before returning to the community, though and worried day after day and now... Now he had help? He had help in this strange man and whoever his boss is who somehow, _somehow_ knew Hanzo (by name!) and had wanted him dead. His mouth struggled to catch up to his head but all that processed was “Y’know Hanzo by name?”

The man snorted. “Yeah, we do.”

“What...” He clears his throat, “What’s your name?”

“Reyes, Gabriel Reyes. _A tu disposición_ , cowboy. I’ve left a way to contact me on your phone over there.” The man, Reyes, waves at Jesse’s bedside table. “Gave us hell trying to get into it, by the way. You do all the security on it?”

“Y- yeah.”

“Great, always needed someone on the team who had half a brain in them. Oh, I spoke too soon, didn’t I? Are you going to _join the team_ , kid? Or am I going to have to walk out of here with my tail between my legs like I did an hour ago with those high and mighty sons-of-bitches you call boss?”

Jesse was still confused. It was dark and he could barely see the man’s face and it was, what, two in the morning? Yep, two in the goddamn morning and he’s expected to make what is probably going to be a life-changing decision. “Can I turn on the light first? Maybe get some coffee?”

Reyes laughs. “Yeah, sure. Take your time.”

Jesse lifts himself out of bed before flicking on the lamp on his table. The sky is, unsurprisingly, still dark- he hopes Aleks won’t be too sleep deprived in the morning. Speaking of which: as he wanders into the hall to make himself some coffee he finds her leaned against the wall beside their door. “Hey there.”

“Hey, asshole. You done with your little chat?” She scrunched her face up and stuck her tongue out at him.

“No, not yet. I’ve accepted I’m not getting any more sleep, though. You can go in, just tell Reyes that if he tries to kick you out the deal is off.” He nudged her with a foot before continuing down the hall.

As she entered the room she called back, “Wow, ominous much?”

Jesse just laughed.

Unfortunately, yet unsurprisingly, the coffee pot wasn’t on when Jesse got to the kitchen. He prepped it and waited patiently for it to rumble to life, sighing in relief as coffee finally began to drip into his mug.

Of all the things the money for this trip went to, a decent coffee maker couldn’t be one of them.

Well. At this point a cup of coffee was the least of his problems.

Once he was back in his room he was greeted by Aleks and Reyes spread out on his bed, Aleks with his stash of little glowing rocks and bits of glass Hanzo gifted him and Reyes with his cigarillos. “Oh, come on!”

Aleks laughed. “Oh, shut up, dickhead. Your friend’s a hoot, I like him.”

“Not my fault, she showed me where they were.” Reyes blew smoke out of his mouth.

“Oh, you bastard! I thought we had a deal!” She tried to shove him off the bed but Reyes, with a foot firmly planted on her side, rolled her over the edge and onto the carpet. Trinkets spilled everywhere. “Traitor!”

“You have t’ leave anyway, we’ve got a conversation to finish.” Jesse lightly kicked her and moved away before she could grab his leg.

“Got your coffee, kid?” Reyes snorted and patted the bed with his recently-weaponized foot. “Took a while.”

“Yeah, well, s’not my fault the coffee maker is shit. Aleks, seriously, get out of here.” She groaned and rolled away, finally pulling herself off the floor and leaving. Jesse yelled out the door, “There’s still coffee in the kitchen! Because I’m the best! You’re welcome!”

He closed the door and sighed.

He was still nervous. What did this mean, in the end? Reyes said he still couldn’t trust Jesse, that there was still information he couldn’t tell him. What if Jesse promised him his help and end up worse than before?

...

He couldn’t think that way. His best shot was to join Reyes and his mysterious boss. “Yeah, yeah, I’ll help you get him out of here.”

Reyes went to speak.

“But the moment I think somethin’ fishy is going on I will turn around and figure this shit out myself. I still ain’t so sure about you, if I’m going to be real. Why not call off the hunt? You know where he is. You’re clearly capable of getting him outta here yourself. Why d’ya need my help?” There was a moment of silence as he finished speaking.

“I can’t call off the hunt because I already tried, kid. You aren’t working for us anymore, not technically. People heard about your hunt, tried to put up higher bets. We withdrew, they were happy to take our place. That’s why we need your help.” Reyes lounged backwards, stretching lazily and putting his cigarillo out on the ashtray balanced on the bedside table. “I don’t know how much Hanzo has told you but... His brother is my boss, if that helps. He misses him. That’s why he’s looking.”

“I...” Jesse needed to see Hanzo. He needed to tell him, needed to _leave_ this room with this strange, intimidating man and his words that seemed to be true, fit everything Jesse had known up to that point yet didn’t sit right- he needed to talk, needed to make sure he wasn’t wrong in deciding to trust this man. “I need t’ go.”

Reyes hummed, amused. “Where to?”

“Bathroom.”

“Heard the spiders are bad this time of year. I’ll go with you.”

“Don’t worry about it.”

“I insist.” With those final words his tone went from almost-joking to murderous.

Jesse sighed and, once Reyes stood, led the way to the docks.

“I’m not gonna lie I thought you were going to run off and tell your leader.” Reyes boots were loud, hitting the dock rhythmically but heavy.

“Nah. You said it yourself, he means more t’ me than any amount of money. I’d be nuts to go to them.” Jesse waits for the raft to re-inflate, having lost some air overnight.

“And where on Earth are you going?”

Jesse stood on the edge of the dock and flung his arms out, encompassing the lake and the dark sky. “Where else?”

And, out of nowhere, a beast erupted out of the water with beauty and grace and _power_ like no dolphin Reyes had ever seen and grabbed Jesse as he tipped over the edge.

Of course.

“Hanzo.”

Gabriel ran, dropping to his knees at the end of the dock and looking into the pitch black water as far as he could. Nothing, not even the faintest ripple, betrayed the chaos that had erupted for a brief moment.

Eyes, glowing blue and shifting with the current, opened just beneath the surface.

The beast resurfaced, blue sparks skittering over the water and scales glinting ominously in the moonlight.

And then Gabriel Reyes was gone, too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow aight this is lowkey kinda late but hey at least it isnt 2 weeks late lmao
> 
> chapter preview:
> 
> “God damn it, what the hell?” Reyes groaned and rolled over in the sand, chest aching from the trip.
> 
> “Oh lovely, he’s awake,” Hanzo growled, pinning the man to the ground with one clawed hand on his chest. “Why are you here? What do you want with us?”


	6. Chapter 6

“What were you  _ thinking _ ?!” Hanzo slapped his tail furiously against the sand. His two captives lay, soaked to the bone and faintly bruised, a few feet deeper inside the cave. Only Jesse was conscious, Reyes having passed out from the combination of air deprivation and shock on the way down.

“I needed t’ come and talk to you! He wouldn’t leave, it was urgent.”

“And you thought the better option was to make it look like I  _ abducted you _ ?”

“He already knew you were here! He knew your name for fucks’ sake!”

“ _ What _ ?!” Hanzo’s tail twitched agitatedly.

“God damn it, what the hell?” Reyes groaned and rolled over in the sand, chest aching from the trip.

“Oh  _ lovely _ , he’s awake,” Hanzo growled, pinning the man to the ground with one clawed hand on his chest. “Why are you here? What do you want with us?”

“Calm down, fish man. I’m trying to help.” Reyes tried to pry the hand off of him but sighed when Hanzo just pressed down harder. “Look, there’s only so much I can tell you and a lot of it I don’t  _ want _ to tell you because it’s not my business to tell. Your brother is okay, he’s looking for you, and he wants you back, okay?”

“My...” Hanzo went slack in shock. “My brother..?”

“That’s what he was tellin’ me. He wanted me t’ help him get us out of here, but I didn’t know what to think.” Jesse led Hanzo off of Reyes, running a hand reassuringly over his shoulder.

“I haven’t- I mean, he- he hasn’t,” His voice shook, face pale. “I haven’t seen him for decades. The- the clan doesn’t- he’s okay? He’s alive?”

Reyes softened. “Yeah, he’s fine. Got a little beat up along the way, but he’s safe.”

“Do y’ have a picture? Just to make sure.” Jesse couldn’t guarantee he didn’t have ulterior motives. Sure, he  _ might _ have been a bit curious as to what Hanzo’s brother looked like. And how it might translate into Hanzo. As a human.  _ Wow _ , Jesse, calm down.

“I would if  _ someone _ hadn’t ruined my phone.” And there, Reyes is back to glaring at the two of them.

There was a pause as the words sunk in and Hanzo bristled. The words came out in an ugly snarl; hair, scales, and fur all stood on end almost like a cat. “I  _ will not _ trust you! You- you- you barge into my home and  _ demand _ that we help you in our own capture with some tall tale of a brother that disappeared without any evidence  _ whatsoever _ and expect us to  _ believe you _ ?! You threatened me, threatened  _ Jesse _ , and I want  _ nothing _ more than to throw you out of here and let you drown like the  _ absolute filth _ you are! I have come this far myself and I don’t need some... some disgusting, half-brained  _ liar _ getting involved and stabbing me in the back!”

Jesse reclined casually in the sand. He should probably stop him before things get out of hand. Probably. He was enjoying the terror on Reyes’ face, though- maybe a few more minutes.

“How much of a  _ fool _ do you take me for?!” Hanzo’s razor-sharp fangs were practically inches from Reyes’ nose as he snarled. “How highly must you think of yourself to walk into a dragon’s den, to hold a gun to his mate, to  _ insult him to his face _ and expect to walk out alive. The only reason I will  _ ever _ let you  _ see the light of day again _ will be to use you as a threat to whoever sent you!”

“I can prove it, damn you!” Reyes shouted as Hanzo lunged a clawed hand for his throat.

Everyone froze.

“Fuck,  _ hijo de puta _ , I’m getting too old for this.” Reyes let out the breath he was holding as Hanzo moved back. “Let me take your cowboy to go and see him, yeah? He can’t come here, not right now, but if McCree decides that it’s good enough we’ll be good?”

Hanzo scoffed. “Jesse doesn’t even know what he  _ looks _ like, let alone tell the difference between him and a well-disguised copy. If you know as much about us as you do,  _ warugaki _ , then you must have inside information of some kind. You know what we are capable of and can easily use it against me.”

He just groaned in response.

“Well hey now, don’t shoot it down so fast. His shit may not be waterproof but mine is; why don’t I just get a picture and bring it back? Hell, a video of him ‘ll work, too,” Jesse suggested.

Hanzo growled, low and menacing, before backing off of Reyes and curling himself protectively around Jesse. He murmured in Jesse’s ear, low enough the other man in the cave couldn’t overhear, “I don’t trust him. In the end, it’s all up to you, but... I worry for you, Jesse. I couldn’t bear the thought of losing you after all this.”

Jesse laughed a little bit and kissed his cheek. “I can take care of myself, sweetpea.”

“I know that, but I still-”

Jesse held a finger up to his lips. “It’s the best plan we’ve got, and we don't have much time before people start wondering where I am. I know you’re worried, Han, but I’ve been doin’ stupid risky shit like this since I was seventeen and known my way around a gun since I was twelve. ‘Nd you’re right, I don’t know much about all that supernatural fuckery, but I’ve got enough under my belt to protect myself.”

“You do?” Hanzo raised an eyebrow.

“Hey now, don’t look at me like that. It ain’t much, but I have a couple’a tricks up my sleeve. I usually keep it under wraps- been accused of bein’ a Devil a few more times than I’m comfortable with. Guess I just forgot.” He shrugged, relaxed but avoiding Hanzo’s eyes.

Hanzo felt bad, suddenly, for prying. The man was clearly uneasy. He muttered a soft apology and nuzzled the side of his face, relief washing over him when Jesse chuckled and leaned into the touch.

“No need t’ apologize, darlin’.” Jesse awkwardly patted the top of his head before untangling himself from the coils of fish tail and approaching Reyes, who was still sprawled tense in the sand. “I’ll go with you. I’ll need t’ make arrangements for some time off when we get back to camp, but I have a ride to get us where we need to be.”

Reyes opened his mouth, about to object. “Hey-”

“Now you just listen to me. You’re already on thin ice,  _ friend _ . No need t’ start throwing yourself even further under the bus,” Jesse snapped.

Reyes pouted like a scolded child.

...

It really wasn’t a good look on a sopping wet forty year old covered in sand.

“Point being, we’re gettin’ out of here and if you even twitch in a way that suggest y’ might be thinkin’ about double crossing me I will put a bullet in your head.” When Jesse was done Reyes nodded.

“What if he has some way to shield himself? It’s easy enough to get a talisman of some kind; whoever sent him could have cast a blocking spell on him.” Hanzo growled.

“I already told you, I can handle myself.” Jesse reached a hand out to Reyes and smiled when he accepted the help standing. “We need t’ get going. Sun’s gonna rise soon; we don’t have much time.”

Hanzo nodded and rounded them up, waiting until they were both in the water before looping an arm around each man and zipping to the surface right below the dock they had been taken from. He let go of Reyes first, but let his hands linger on Jesse’s waist before kissing him goodbye.

When he finally let go and disappeared back into the lake, a spotlight on the end of the dock switched on and blinded the two men still submerged in the water.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hoooooo boy ive gotten maybe 10 hours of sleep in the last 4 days the band trip was wild
> 
> but yeah uh chapt preview will be up soon i hope


	7. Chapter 7

Panic clawed its way up Jesse’s throat and tore its way out in a scream: “ _ Hanzo! _ ”

Bullets rained down into the water, and although he was able to avoid the worst of it by ducking underwater and swimming, the air was punched from his lungs by several close-calls and a bullet lodged, burning, in his hip. Reyes was thrashing weakly beside him, trying to move further away from the docks but stopped by his quickly slipping consciousness, the bullet in his shoulder, and the rope around his ankles.

Wait- rope?

Jesse could suddenly feel himself being drawn up and out of the water by his feet. He struggled to get away; every kick sent pain rocketing down his side and aggravated the open grazes, but he had to get out of there- he had to get  _ Hanzo _ out of there before he was shot and cut open and stuffed like a wild animal. But, of course, once his head was out of the water and his eyes adjusted to the bright lights, he could see Aleks’ silhouette, bound and kneeling.

His head slammed against the heavy cement pillar holding the dock above water.

He sobbed. They were just getting started, they would’ve gotten free- Hanzo could’ve seen his  _ brother _ .

They could’ve made a life together.

“H- Hanzo,” he gasped again, lungs weak and sight blurry.

He could hear laughter as he struggled to stay conscious.

Hanzo’s name fell from his lips one last time before his world was swallowed by darkness.

Silence fell as the dozens of poachers crowded on the dock reeled Jesse and Reyes’ limp bodies over the rough wood. Aleks struggled weakly against the ropes binding her at the end, unable to make any noise past the gag in her mouth. The sound of the water washing gently against the beach was broken only by the steady creaking of the pulley.

The night was still, almost eerie in comparison to the chaos that took place seconds before.

The stars looked silently on, glowing weakly against the artificial light. And, just like the hunters couldn’t see the stars, none of them could see the glow simmering just under the surface of the lake.

Blood, scarlet against the green water, dripped from Jesse’s hair and dispersed in the gentle current.

And in that instant, the peace was  _ shattered _ . The Dragon surged from the water in a tidal wave of spines and lightning, snarling as lethal claws tore through flesh and bone like butter and scales shredded skin and clothes alike. Wood creaked under his weight as he lunged further onto the dock, his tail thrashing furiously before catching on the pulley and hoisting the majority of his weight onto the unstable structure. The unlucky poachers who weren’t knocked into the water were ripped to pieces- muscle and tendon alike were separated from bone until the victims lay bloodied, limp, and in horrific pain.

It wasn’t nearly enough to pay for the lives they had taken.

The dock let out a final groan before splintering down the middle and dropping its heavy load into the water. Hanzo furiously shoved away body after body, searching for his mate and the man who promised him his brother. Jesse was able to breathe in the water, sure, but it didn’t mean much when he was unconscious and barely breathing in the first place; Hanzo didn’t want to do this again, he  _ couldn’t  _ do this again.

He had only just allowed himself to hope he could get his brother back. He refused to lose Jesse, too.

But the issue with dead bodies is that they float, and Jesse and Reyes couldn’t exactly sink down below while they were still roped to what remained of the dock.

Time was running short. Human lungs were small and couldn’t possibly last long under the lagoon.

_ There! _ Chestnut hair and maroon flannel billowed softly under the surface. The rough rope didn’t last a second against Hanzo’s claws as he cut the lines tangled around both Jesse and Reyes. Hanzo didn’t have the strength to hoist both of them above the water- the magic used to throw himself out of the lake was draining (and he did it twice, Genji would be impressed).

Though, things got a little complicated when he beached himself trying to get Jesse and Reyes out of the water. They were both breathing, thank god, but it would only be a matter of time before the commotion attracted the rest of the camp’s inhabitants; with Hanzo stuck, exhausted, and both Jesse and Reyes unconscious, it would be a piece of cake to shoot them down right there in the sand.

_ Speak of the Devil _ . Flashlights blinked in front of the distant cabins, not quite close enough to spot the three on the beach but still enough to make fear spike down Hanzo’s spine. He clawed at the dry sand underneath him, shivering as it stuck to his wet flesh and ground underneath the edge of his scales. Flipping over only bared his sensitive underside to the dry, warm air and further grated the sand against his back, but it gave him enough leverage to flip himself over and get his head and shoulders in the lapping waves.

He was so exhausted. Every move felt like dragging a tonne of cement.

He had to try.

He  _ had _ to try.

It was the only way.

He reached out a hand, allowing the water to soak it. Lightning sparked, boiling the water on his skin before spreading into the lake below, reaching further and further into the dark waters.

_ He had to try _ .

Far, far below, the algae in his cave that normally glowed so gently lit up with a wild blue fire and sent out sparks of magic of their own.

Shouts drifted down to the shore, quickly accompanied by gunshots.

The earth trembled as magic sunk into the ground, displacing sand and rock and carving lines from lagoon to ocean.

_ Please, please, it has to work. _

A shot plunged into Hanzo’s back, popping his lung in an awful, pained screech.

_ Please. _

The flow of magic cut off as he coughed up blood and choked on the liquid flooding his airway.

_ Please... _

Tears fell from his eyes as everything faded to black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im sorry im sorry iM SORRY  
> this isnt over i PROMISE IT GETS BETTER IM SORRY


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh my god this took so long to write and i kept trying to end it sooner rather than later but words just kept HAPPENING  
> (have fun, more angst before things start looking up)

Jesse woke up in chains, his head absolutely pounding against his skull.

It wasn’t the first time such a thing had happened, but it was still startling. Fortunately, said chains weren’t actually attached to anything- he wasn’t sure if it was an insult or an intentional omittance and he honestly didn’t want to know.

Reyes was curled up on the ground next to him, his form only visible thanks to the small window letting in a sliver of midday sun. The cell was far too large for just the two of them; it must have been one of the holding areas the poachers made for more... Precious cargo.

But- oh. There was a... A tank? The thing was  _ huge _ , but the water was murky and he could barely see through the illuminated part from where he was sitting.

“Hey, kid. The fuck are we?” Reyes sounded like shit.

“Some kind’a holding container. Middle of the compound, no way outta here unless we plan on getting a boat in the open ocean.” Jesse waved at the window, then struggled off the floor. “M’ sure Hanzo got out of there, we should be able t’ get in contact with him and get a way out.”

“Fair enough. We get him in contact with Genji, the two of them could tear this place up from the foundations.” Reyes did his best to sit upright, the blood draining from his face.

“Not so sure about that,” Jesse grunts. “It’s bad enough they caught us off guard, it took nothing for them to take us down.”

Reyes nods. “Alright. Why don’t you try to find us a way out of here? I need a minute for all the blood to drain out of my head.”

“I’m going, I’m going. Now, what on earth...” Jesse shuffled to the tank and saw-

And saw-

Hanzo’s body drifted in the tank. Delicate, peaceful, yet undeniably dead.

“Hanzo..?”

Jesse’s hands shook.

“N- no.”

He scrambled to pull of the top of the tank.

“ _ No! _ ”

The moment it was open he dragged Hanzo upright and checked for a pulse.

Just- just to make sure.

He had to be sure.

He couldn’t be dead; Hanzo  _ couldn’t be dead _ , it wasn’t  _ possible _ .

Not for beings like Hanzo.

“No, no,  _ please _ , you can’t- you can’t leave me, we still-”

He cradled Hanzo against his chest, tears burning his eyes as they threatened to fall.

“We still had so much t’  _ do _ , I can’t-” Jesse’s legs gave out from under him.

“Well, shit.” Reyes struggled his way to where the cowboy was kneeling on the floor and laid a hand on his back.

Jesse whimpered, his head falling to rest on Hanzo’s shoulder as he watched his tears mix with the water on the Dragon’s skin. “Why, why,  _ why _ -”

He was so cold under Jesse’s hands.

He still glittered so... Beautifully.

...

“Hah!” Reyes yelled triumphantly.

“Wh- what?” Jesse jumped at the shout.

“My phone is working!” He leapt off the ground, nausea forgotten in his excitement. “Come on, come  _ on _ , pick  _ up _ -!”

Jesse could hear a faint “Hello?” through the phone speaker.

“ _ Yes _ ! Genji!” Reyes pumped a fist in the air. “We were captured- yeah, me and your brother’s boy toy. We need a rescue team- yeah, I  _ know _ \- just-  _ bring Angie _ .”

A pause.  _ The lack of a heartbeat under Jesse’s palm is still heartbreaking _ .

“It’s- it’s bad. Your brother, he’s... He was a good dragon, Genji. You and I both- yeah. Yeah, he’s dead.” Reyes’ voice was dripping with guilt. He just hoped that they’d be able to get there in time to bring Hanzo back. “I’m sorry, I- I tried to protect him, they caught us off guard. Just  _ hurry up _ , you know there’s a time limit on Angie’s powers.”

Another pause.  _ Hanzo’s hair was still so soft _ .

“Thanks. And  _ hurry _ !” Reyes pulled the phone away from his ear and sighed. “We have people on their way. I- I assumed you-”

“He can’t stay here. He doesn’t- didn’t. Didn’t deserve t’ be stuffed and turned into some gruesome plaything. Didn’t deserve.” Jesse ran his fingers delicately along Hanzo’s cheekbone. “He- he didn’t deserve to die.”

“I’m sorry, kid. Didn’t mean for you to get caught up in all this shit.” Reyes mumbled. “If I hadn’t-”

“Fuck, it ain’t your fault,” Jesse laughed humorlessly. “We were tryin’a break out already. Hell, even if we hadn’t been plannin’ nothing they still would’ve kicked the shit out of me for not ratting him out.”

“And our chances now?”

“Caught operating outside the company, withholding knowledge of target whereabouts, and cooperation with a non-paying party? At best we’d be beaten half to death and abandoned out in fuck-all nowhere.” He took a shuddering breath and rubbed his face with his hands, watching with weary eyes as Hanzo’s limp form sunk back under the murky water. “They’re pro’lly just going t’ take us out to the fucking dock and shoot us after they’ve left us here t’ rot for a bit.”

“Well, shit,” Reyes groaned. “It’ll be at least three days before they’ll be here to pick us up.”

Jesse laughed coldly again. “Fuck. Fuck!”

He paced nervously between the tank and the window. They’d come for them by then, no matter the punishment. Keeping prisoners meant wasting men and supplies- he and Reyes would have two days tops before the Captain decided what to do with them.

“You’re positive it’s three days at the soonest?”

Reyes could hear the desperation in the boy’s voice. “Yeah. I can try and call again, but unless they have a magic source to lock on to on this end we’re stuck waiting.”

Jesse froze and turned slowly to face the other man. “How familiar do they have t’ be with it for it to work?”

“Not very. Satya just has to know any distinct features to be able to trace it,” Gabe shrugs. “Nothing like that around here, though, except Hanzo.”

“Y’sure about that?” Jesse’s grin was wolfish.

“Are you telling me you actually have a traceable magic signature and not just a couple of party tricks like half the bozos here?” Reyes was skeptical. He’s met men like this- men who thought they ruled the world because they could make sparks shoot from their fingertips. Things never turned out well.

“Wha’dya need to do t’ track it?” Jesse resumed his pacing.

“I’ll have to call them back, get her to look near our location and tell her what, specifically, to look for.” Reyes wasn’t dumb. He  _ knew _ Jesse was avoiding his question.

He was still going to try, though. The kid was a wreck.

Jesse watched anxiously as Reyes pulled out his phone and dialed the number.

“God damn it Gabe, it’s been  _ twenty minutes _ , nothing’s fucking changed-”

Ah, the phone was on speaker this time. “Shut up, Jack, please? The kid thinks Satya may be able to track him.”

“Wh- how? Didn’t you say there wasn’t anyone there with any significant signature?” The voice over the phone was rough.

“I dunno. He insisted I call.” Reyes glared at him. “Is she there? Might as well get this over with.”

“Yeah, yeah. She’s been listening in. What do you need from him?” Not a smoked-a-pack-a-day kind of rough, more spent-twenty-years-yelling-nonstop rough.

“Jesse McCree, is it?” Oh, a new voice.

“Y- yes ma’am.”

“My name is Satya Vaswani. Has Gabe told you about my magic?” She was- smoother, her accent pleasant on the ear.

“A bit, I guess. Know that y’have to have a pretty powerful source to trace.”

“So, you know enough. Tell me,  _ what is your magic, Jesse McCree _ ?”

And with her words, Jesse could feel himself go into a kind of trance.

Their voices spoke in unison.

“ _ The taste of dry, desert sand. _ ”

“ _ The feel of brush under your hands. _ ”

“ _ The heat-haze on asphalt on a dry, hot day. _ ”

Deadeye sparked to life at the back of his skull, burning its way to his eye and swallowing the room in a red-gold heatwave.

Reyes’ voice just barely seeped through the fog- a low, rumbling “Well, damn,” that just about summed up Jesse’s reaction to the strange blue portal opening up in front of him.

Just like that Deadeye snapped, the energy ricocheting back into Jesse without a proper weapon to channel it. The red-hot blaze stabbed through his eye and into the back of his skull where it originated, leaving his face bruised and head aching.

But there were three more people in the room then there were less than a minute ago.

There was a young man, his hair shockingly green and brows heavy- he must be Genji. The resemblance was honestly surprising.

Of the two women, it was a safe bet to say the one spinning patterns of blue light between her fingers was Satya.

Jesse cleared his throat. “Miss Vaswani?”

She turned around. He was right. “You must be Jesse.”

“Y- yeah.” He respectfully ducked his head. She did the same in response.

“A pleasure. We must start moving now, the portal only stays open for an hour- less with use. My companion- Angela Ziegler- is here to make sure that Hanzo is transported safely.” Miss Vaswani gestured at the blonde woman beside her.

“Good morning, Gabe, Jesse,” she said as she waved cheerfully at the two of them.

Genji was... shockingly quiet.

Miss Ziegler continued to speak. “I’m going to need some help keeping the portal open while we transfer the tank; we have one there, but we are unsure as to how well he would survive the teleporter out of it. Our best bet is to just get this one over and transfer him there.”

Jesse shudders. “Not that I mind helpin’ y’all, but... Hanzo is- is  _ dead _ . How- how could carryin’ him through make things any  _ worse _ ?”

The first noise Genji made that day was a choked-off sob.

Miss Ziegler glanced nervously at him before speaking again. “It’s hard for me to explain, and for that I am truly, deeply sorry, but there is a chance I can bring him back and I need your help getting him through to do it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im making no promises on a reliable update schedule because finals are coming up and i need to like. actually study for those? what?
> 
> but please comment if u like it ur words fuel me


	9. Chapter 9

“ _ What _ ?” Jesse’s voice shook as her words echoed through his already-painful skull.

“I know how it sounds, but really, all I can say is that you and Satya are  _ not _ the only magic users in the room. Now please, Jesse, I need you and Gabe to hold open the portal while I get the tank through.” Miss Ziegler waited a moment for Jesse to respond, and when nothing came she brushed past him to the murky glass container.

“Come on, kid. I know it’s a lot to handle but you just need to focus on the right now and what Angela is telling you so we can get out of here.” Reyes took Jesse by the shoulders and- yeah. He was right. They needed to get out of the compound, everything else could come later.

Jesse nodded. Gabe lead him closer to the strange blue vortex and showed him how to hook his hands around the outer ring and pull it open wider.

“We only need to keep it like this until she gets it halfway through; once it gets to there it’ll hold itself open,” Reyes said, grunting with the effort of holding the portal. The faint whirr of Miss Ziegler’s equipment activating could be heard under Reyes’ voice.

“Coming through!” She pushed on one end of the tank, the other finding its way into the swirling mass- though it nearly scraped the skin off of Jesse’s knuckles. All of a sudden it slowed down, as if meeting some resistance on the other side.

As if he could read Jesse’s mind, Reyes spoke up. “It’s always a bit slow going at first, trying to transport something of this size. You can’t force it or the portal on the other side breaks its circuit.”

Jesse nodded.

“I believe I owe you an explanation, Jesse,” said Miss Ziegler as the tank sunk another few feet into the portal. “My family has had Angels bound to them since our first ancestors made the deal centuries ago. Their power is what grants me the ability to resurrect those who have been judged worthy.”

“Wait, so you could-”

“Theoretically, yes.” She let go, motioning for Jesse and Gabe to do the same. Just as Reyes had said, it continued to move forward. “In all honesty our power is fickle and can be easily swayed by simple matters. I have had issues resurrecting people just because they broke a rule as a child and never suffered the consequences for it. For someone like Hanzo...”

“He wasn’t in the wrong, though.” Jesse was confused. From what Hanzo and Reyes had told him, Hanzo had done the right thing by sending his brother away. What would he have done to make him guilty?

“He left me to die. I was furious for  _ decades _ . I didn’t understand that what he did was to help me get away until after I had time to think clearly.” Genji spoke up from beside Miss Vaswani, who was focusing on keeping up a steady stream of magic as the tank finally slipped all the way through.

“But-”

Miss Vaswani glared at both Genji and Jesse. “As thrilling as this conversation is, we need to leave. Now.”

The five of them took turns stepping through the portal, Jesse hesitating only slightly when he realized he could see an open warehouse on the other side. He held his breath and lunged forward, expecting some kind of resistance- he just stumbled and fell to the ground on the other side.

“Oh, watch out!” Gentle hands helped him stand. Once Jesse was oriented he thanked the woman they belonged to- short, yet kind and bubbling with energy. Not the magic kind, mind you, though he was sure she had some of that as well.

“Th’ name’s Jesse McCree.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you! I’m Mei.” She shook his hand with enthusiasm and, while she didn’t give him a last name to address her by, he was sure she wouldn’t mind if he addressed her less formally.

Miss Ziegler cleared her throat, and everyone went quiet and gathered around the tank now in the center of the room.

“I need to make it clear now that it is of the utmost importance that, no matter what happens, none of you can interfere with the ceremony.” She looked around at all of them before locking eyes with Genji. “The  _ utmost importance _ . Do you understand?”

Genji just rolled his eyes.

MIss Ziegler loomed above Hanzo, who was by no means small in either stature or power. The aura emanating from her swallowed the room and all those in it in a show of ability Jesse had never seen in his life.

“ _ Hanzo Shimada, I judge you with the powers granted to me by my mother, and her mother before her, and all those before them. _

_ You shunned your brother for having the curiosity of a child, for wanting to experience a life he would have been able to in any other circumstance. You drove him away from your home and, while you did not kill him, he was left horribly injured and in a body he didn’t know how to use. You secluded yourself away from the rest of the world; locked yourself in a prison of your own making in an attempt to punish yourself while your brother called out to you for help. _

_ What do you say? _ ”

For a moment, nothing happened. The room froze; it was so still you could hear a pin drop.

Then Hanzo’s mouth fell open and two voices came pouring out of him.

“ **_We only wished to save him._ **

“ _ From what? _ ”

“ **_Our family. Our prison._ ** ”

“ _ The transformation maimed him. _ ”

“ **_We have spent the last century doing nothing but regret the path we took to set him free, and know no other way it could be done._ ** ”

“ _ And of not coming to his aid when he begged for you? _ ”

“ **_We did not_ ** **know** **_! We stranded ourselves and our own grief kept us locked away. We couldn’t have left. We_ ** **tried** **_to leave, over and over, but our magic wasn’t strong enough to break down the walls we built._ ** ”

“ _ And of simply turning yourself human and joining your brother in that form? _ ”

Turns out Miss Ziegler’s warning was for nothing. Genji leapt forward to cling to Hanzo’s shoulders and shouted, voice cracking with tears, “Fuck off, I don’t care! I forgave him, I  _ love _ him, I just want my brother back!”

The energy surrounding the three began to pulse the moment the words left Genji’s mouth. “ _ Genji Shimada, brother of Hanzo. Do you wish for your character to be judged alongside his? If you prove worthy it will bring him back, but if you fail you both die. _ ”

“Do you think I have a chance?” He begged, clutching Hanzo tighter against his chest.

“ _ I cannot tell you, for this bargain must be made without knowledge of the events to pass. _ ”

“That’s bullshit! You already know the answer.” Genji’s voice cracked under the strain.

“ _ The answer is decided by the actions you take, not by those you have already taken. _ ”

Realization passed over his face. “Yeah. Yes, I’ll do it.”

“ _ You are willing to risk your life for the brother who abandoned you? You surely know you will not be judged well. You mistreated the only true family you had because of events beyond his control and, when he saved you from your own undoing, you left him to grieve over you. He thought you were dead and it was the greatest pain he had ever been through, yet you did nothing. _ ”

“I would do anything to fix what I did.”

Silence followed his words. Genji stared down the being in Miss Ziegler’s place- a challenge, willing them to disagree.

“ _ Your heart is pure, Genji Shimada, and through you, your brother. _ ”

The room let out a sigh of relief.

“ _ I grant him the gift of a second life, and break the curses he struggled to free himself from after his grief lessened. _ ” The light faded and Miss Ziegler was left standing behind the tank like nothing had happened.

There was a startling, silent moment where nothing happened. Did... Did it not work?

And then Hanzo jerked in Genji’s arms and gasped. His hands scratched at the glass sides of the tank until they hooked over the edges and clung until it shattered.

The noise wrenched Jesse out of his reverie and he stumbled forward, tripping over shards of glass but he didn’t care, he  _ didn’t care _ , Hanzo was alive.

Hanzo was  _ alive _ .

Hanzo was alive!

He crashed into the Dragon’s tail, falling forward until his face was pressed against the smooth skin of Hanzo’s stomach and he could smell nothing but sand, brine, and the faint electric tingle that accompanied Hanzo’s magic.

“It’s good to see you too, Jesse.” The words rumbled through him, Hanzo’s breath labored yet amused.

Jesse mumbled wordlessly back, simply feeling the warmth that had been missing just moments ago. It would take a miracle to pry him off, the hands combing through his hair and the heart just barely audible under his ear making him lazy and relieved.

“Genji...” Hanzo murmured, shifting just enough to look his brother in the eye.

“You bastard, I missed you.” Genji laughed past the tears streaming down his face, drawing Hanzo into a tight hug.

“I missed you too, Genji.” Hanzo’s voice was hoarse. “I missed you too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh my god u guys writing the end was such a pleasant experience i love seeing the boyes happy finally


End file.
